Canis Minor
by Drindrak
Summary: Sirius stared at the tapestry on the wall. Stared at the name connected to his by a thin branch that simply read "Father." The name of his godson's best friend. AU where Hermione is Sirius daughter, but no one alive finds out until after the Battle of Hogwarts.


**A/N: I swear, this was only supposed to be like 2'000 words. I just couldn't stop writing.**

* * *

Sirius leaned back in the armchair he had dragged into the room that held the Black Family Tree. He'd just returned to Grimmauld Place after his godson and his godson's friends helped him escape the Dementor's Kiss by freeing the supposedly executed Buckbeak, which he flew all the way out of Europe. He'd returned a few days ago as his godson had apparently completed a dangerous tournament, witnessed the death of a friend, and Voldemort coming back into a real body. His eyes roved over the names and faces on the tapestry, staring a bit longer at the few family members that had been burnt off of it. His eyes flicked to the right, where he knew his burnt out face and half-burnt name was. He sighed heavily. He was about to stand and leave the room, probably to head to the kitchens for some dinner, when he noticed that there was a thin branch coming from his name, leading down and out to the edge of the tapestry. As he followed the branch, his heart leapt to his throat as he spotted the word "Father" written above an extremely familiar face. He jumped to his feet and ran across the room, using his fingers to trace the branch that connected his name to the newest face on the tree. His hand trembled lightly as he ran it over the face, hoping that one of the Order members was playing a prank on him and had simply magicked the face onto the wall. He knew it was impossible, as only members of the Black family and invited guests may enter the room, but he still wished it true.

"Oh lord..." He whispered, dropping his hand and staring, terrified, at the face of Hermione Granger that frowned out at him. He'd forgotten that the tapestry was self-updating, just in case any of the Blacks sired a bastard and they had no heirs. The few who did sire one though, had their bastard children burnt from the tapestry. His whole body trembled. He knew that his mother had lived for two or more years after he was shipped off to Azkaban, heck, Hermione had probably been around two by that time, and his brother Regulus frequently returned before he was killed by the Dark Lord. They both had to have seen the new face here. But why hadn't they burnt it off? Why was _his_ bastard child still kept, when all others, even the one his own _father_ sired, were blasted off without a second thought? He knew the answer of course. His mother and his cousin Narcissa had been the only two Blacks left free when he'd been caught by Aurors, and Narcissa didn't even truly count as she had been a Malfoy by that time. The Black family were all either incarcerated, dead, or dying. He looked at the name and face, and banged his head against the wall. His mother must have been pissed. Her son's only child was not only a bastard, but also a half-blood born to a _muggle,_ as there was no magically-added mother, since only people with magic were added to the tapestry. Sirius laughed softly under his breath. That must have been a thing to see. His mother probably ranted and raved for weeks! A half-blood, muggle-raised, thought to be muggleborn, witch was one of the last of the Blacks! The thought made him laugh a bit louder for a few seconds, before he sobered and ran his hand across the name. "Merlin. How am I supposed to tell her?" He muttered, tracing the letters in her name. "How am I supposed to tell _anyone?_" He sighed once again, and got out his wand. With a wave of his wand at the tapestry, he turned and left the room, heading to the kitchen for some much needed food. The name and face on the wall slowly began to fade, having been put under a weak disillusionment and notice-me-not charm.

* * *

Sirius watched her through the window as as she arrived, holding onto Remus' arm and a bit unsteady on her feet from the side-long apparition. He cocked his head to the side as she bent over slightly, holding a hand to her abdomen, nausea clearly evident on her face. She stood after a few deep breaths, and Sirius got a good look at her features. She'd inherited her mother's hair colour, and, Sirius winced slightly, _his_ mother's hair's bushy texture. She had eyes that were a darker brown than her mother's, though Sirius swore that, in the dying sunlight, they were almost his grey colour. Her cheeks arched much like he remember her mother's had, but the main shape of her face and that chin of her's were definitely his. As he studied her, he couldn't help but wonder, how had no one noticed the similarities? He almost hit himself at his own stupidity. Everyone thought she was a muggleborn. They weren't looking for similarities to an old family once they heard that, or, if they had noticed, they brushed it off as coincidence. He shook himself from his staring as Remus lead her into the house. Sirius walked out of the sitting room, just in time to see his mother staring at Hermione, mouth half-open as if she had been about to start ranting. Sirius waved his wand and shut the curtains before she could begin because the first thing that was probably going to come from her mouth was derogatory terms to Remus and about his relation to Hermione. He grinned at the two people before him and raised a hand in greeting.

"Hey, welcome to the Grim-Old-Place!" Remus shook his head with a grin and a wave back, while Hermione smiled, and lord, how that simple smile made Sirius heart lurch. It was near identical to his own. He cleared his throat and continued talking. "The Weaselys are coming by in about an hour, how about Remus and I show you to the room you'll be using?" He scrunched up his nose for a second before adding, "You'll have to share with Ginevra though, too many Dark Artifacts in this house and a ridiculous amount of rooms to search and clear."

"That's alright Sirius, Ginny and I are friends." Hermione said, and Sirius' grin widened.

"Great! Just follow me!"

* * *

"So... Hermione, right?" Sirius started, sitting next to Remus on the couch opposite of the fireplace. Hermione was sitting in an armchair off to the side a bit, flipping through a textbook. She glanced up up at him, eyebrows raised.

"Yes, Sirius?" Sirius shifted in his seat.

"Um, how did you and Harry become friends?" He figured he could work up to questions about her mother after a few questions about Harry. Hermione winced and rubbed her shoulder. Sirius' eyes narrowed at the action.

"Well, let's just say, troll boogies don't come off of wands very easily." Sirius blinked in confusion. What did troll boogers have to do with how she and Harry... he choked on air as he figured out the hidden meaning.

"You and Harry fought a _troll?!_" Hermione blushed and she nodded. "W-When?" She gulped and glanced at Remus, who was staring with equal amounts of horror.

"F-First Year?" She said, though it came out as a question. Sirius felt like fainting. His godson fought a troll in first year, alongside his... his daughter! They could have been killed! "R-Ron was there too! He helped us!" Sirius groaned and buried his head in his hands. Knowing that another First Year had been there did _not_ help with his inner crisis.

"You could have been killed!" Remus shouted, and Sirius nodded, agreeing with him. "What were you thinking?!" Hermione crossed her arms and shook her head.

"I don't really want to talk about it." Sirius heard the angry tone in her voice and, if she was anything like himself personality-wise, knew she'd probably give them a heck of a tongue-lashing and maybe even send a jinx or two at them, despite the underage magic laws. He nodded slightly and asked a different question.

"Well, then, uh, what do your parents do?" Hermione frowned at him.

"Why do you want to know?"

"I just want to get to know Harry's friends. I know all about the Weaselys, but you're... m-muggleborn, so, um..." He fidgeted when she leveled him with an accusing stare. After a moment she shrugged.

"My mum and step-dad are dentists." Sirius' blinked. _'What the hell is a dentist?'_ He thought. "Dentists look after your teeth and make sure their okay." Sirius frowned at the description, but nodded none-the-less. "My mum's name is Jane, Jane Granger. My step-dad's name is Robert. He took on my mum's last name when they married, since he didn't want to have the last name of Smith for much longer." Sirius nodded and glanced over at Remus, who had tilted his head and frowned ever-so-slightly.

"Step-dad?" The werewolf asked. Hermione scratched her cheek.

"Well, my mum had been pregnant with me when they met. My mum's last boyfriend, the one who knocked her up, was sent to prison for mass-murder about two years after my birth, and she'd been pretty shaken up about it." Sirius winced lightly, not enough for Hermione to notice, but Remus sure did notice and he eyed Sirius suspiciously from the corner of his eye. "My step-dad helped her get through the final exam for her university course on dentistry, and he was by her side, holding her hand when I was born. He proposed after three years of dating. I do call him dad though, he's been in my life since forever." Sirius glanced down in shame when she said that. If he hadn't gone after Pettigrew, he could have been there to see his kid being born. He looked back up after a few seconds when Hermione scoffed. She frowned again and her nose scrunched up in thought, and Sirius felt Remus stiffen next to him, a subtle glance confirming that Remus was looking between Sirius and Hermione constantly, as if trying to find similarities between them. "Every time I asked mum about who my real dad was, she'd always clam up and refuse to talk until I let the subject drop. It was even worse after third year, every time she'd see Sirius' face on TV she'd get really sick and pale."

"Hermione, I think-" Remus started, and Sirius' eyes widened as he caught the knowing glance Remus gave him. Sirius leapt to stop his friend from revealing his secret so soon, but it had been unnecessary once the floo flared. Remus frowned at the fireplace and continued with, "-that the Weaselys are here." Remus shot him a glare, and Sirius knew that Remus would be cornering him later. Sirius leaned down to whisper into Remus' ear as Hermione rushed to the fireplace to greet the Weasely family.

"Meet me in the tapestry room after dinner."

* * *

"Sirius Black!" Remus shouted as he entered the tapestry room. Sirius winced and rubbed his ear at the volume of his voice. "You better tell me right now what is happening!" Sirius wrung his hands together and sighed.

"Remus, Hermione's..." He trailed off, not quite sure how to tell his friend. Remus raised a brow.

"I know she's related to you, I could see the Black features once I noticed how similar you two were! I want to know how in the world she is!" Sirius scrunched up his nose, trying to think of a way to tell him, and Remus gave him a pointed look. "You two even scrunch your noses the... same..." Remus' eyes widened. "...way..." The werewolf stared at Sirius, making him wince once more and fidget. "No way." Sirius swallowed the lump in his throat. "There is _no way._ She can't be..." He trailed off as Sirius drew his wand and waved it at the wall, before pointing at the branch coming from his name.

"Follow the branch Remus." Sirius sat down in the armchair in the centre of the room, and watched as his friend followed the branch with his finger, pausing when he reached the end of it.

"Holy shit." Remus whispered softly, and Sirius felt like laughing. It wasn't everyday that Remus swore. "Merlin above, Sirius!" Remus yelled, turning quickly, making Sirius flinch back. "She's your daughter?!" Sirius nodded. "I know you met a pretty young muggle when you, James, and Lily visited Lily's parents, and that you, well, did _it_ with her, but you got her pregnant?!" Sirius placed his hands on his knees and sighed.

"Uh-huh. Jane was pretty beautiful, and, yeah, I couldn't help myself, but I swear, I didn't know she was pregnant when I left her! I didn't even know I had a kid until I got back here after escaping and my trip to Majorca!" He pointed at Hermione's face on the wall. " I came in here after a few days ago and then I saw it myself!" He dropped his face into his hands and groaned. "How am I supposed to tell her? I'm sure she already suspects some sort of relation to me, I mean, we look alike!" Remus frowned.

"You better tell her soon." Sirius nodded.

"I'll tell her soon. End of summer at the latest."

* * *

Sirius tried to tell her that week, before Harry came. He constantly tried to get Hermione on her own, but ever since the Weaselys showed up, they seemed hellbent on keeping them apart. When he offered to show her the tapestry room, to show her for herself, Hermione refused, stating she'd already been inside and it was a dreary little room and all the faces on the wall kind of creeped her out. Her answer shocked everyone who'd been listening, but after a few minutes, they figured Sirius had allowed everyone into the room and left it at that. Sirius furrowed his brow and waved as a few Order members went to pick up his godson. Remus had left with them, giving Sirius a pointed look and jerking his head towards the reading Hermione, and Sirius sighed. The Weasely children were surrounding her, and Sirius really didn't want to tell her with everyone listening. He eyed her from the corner of his eye and, as he glanced at the worn book in her hand, a grin lit up his face as he figured out a way to tell her in private.

"Hey," He started, making everyone in the room look up. "who wants to help me clean up the library? I've been trying to find some books to give to Harry, but, well, the library's a mess." He stared as Hermione jumped to her feet and grinned, placing her book on the table before her.

"I'll help Sirius!" He smiled at her and nodded, before turning to lead her to the Library, where they'd be alone, and finally have a chat about their relation. They'd just reached the stairs when two of the Weaselys rushed to them, the youngest boy and the only girl.

"We'll help too Sirius! Four is better than just two, right?" Sirius smiled tightly and nodded, letting the kids rush of past him. He sighed and brought a hand to his temple. Why was it so hard to get some alone time with Hermione so they could talk about him being her father? He shook his head and continued up the stairs. Now he had to actually go through with his little lie and find a book for Harry.

* * *

Sirius brought Harry into the tapestry room a few hours after he arrived. Harry glanced around in wonder, his eyes roving over the many faces on the tapestry.

"What is this place?" Harry asked, his eyes flicking to one of the burnt out faces.

"The tapestry room. This is the Black Family Tree." He heard Harry snort under his breath,

"Literally." Sirius grinned. His eyes went to the disillusioned face of Hermione. He could undo the illusion, but how would Hermione react, being told Sirius was her father by her best friend and not the man himself? He'd tried to get her on her own to tell her, but one of the Weaselys always seemed to be with her, or showed up the second they began talking. "So, where's your name, Sirius?" Harry asked, squinting at the many faces and names. Sirius sighed and pointed out his burnt out face. "Oh..." Sirius shrugged.

"It's alright pup."

"Sirius," Harry pointed at the branch coming from his name. "where does this branch go?" Sirius flinched back and shook his head.

"No where, pup. It goes nowhere. Not yet, at least." Harry looked up at him and nodded. Then he spotted a name he'd hated since first year.

"Malfoy? You're related to Malfoy!" Harry exclaimed, pointing out Sirius' cousin Narcissa, who had a picture of her husband Lucius and their son Draco next to her. Sirius raised a brow.

"Pup, all purebloods are related to each other in one way or another. _You're_ related to Draco, because of your grandmum, Dorea Black." Sirius pointed out a fairly pretty witch that was situated close to his own. Harry stared at her and frowned. "Hey, he's only like your third cousin or something, no need to go all mopey." Harry smiled. Sirius made to ask him about Hermione, when Molly called out from downstairs,

"Dinner's ready!"

* * *

_'Shit.'_ Sirius thought, as he rushed through the Ministry, wand in hand and sending stunners at everyone who tried to stop him. _'What in the world was Harry thinking!'_ He turned a few corners. _'He even brought school children on this ridiculous crusade!'_ He had heard, from Minerva, that Harry had taken a few members of Dumbledore's Army with him when he rushed off to the Ministry. _'And wherever Harry is,'_ Sirius thought, sending another stunner at a Death Eater. _'Hermione's gonna be as well.'_ He never had gotten to tell her that they were related. He couldn't tell her when he consoled her and Harry when Arthur had been bitten by Voldemort's snake, as that was some _very_ inappropriate timing, and they all left before he could get a word in anywhere. He skidded to a stop near the Veil of Death, spotting Harry throwing spells at two Death Eaters, one of which he recognized as Lucius Malfoy.

"Harry!" Sirius shouted, rushing forward, a stunning spell flying from his wand. The spell was deflected easily, and Sirius stepped beside Harry. "Are you okay pup!" Harry nodded, and they began firing spell after spell, side by side, at the two Death Eaters. After a few minutes of spells, Sirius spotted Lucius staggering slightly, having tripped over a loose tile. He raised his wand to fire a spell, when, out of the corner of his eyes, he spotted a red spell heading his way. He turned to the spell, and his eyes widened when it hit, sending him toppling back. He saw his cousin, Bellatrix, cackling madly, wand in hand, pointing at him. He saw some Aurors and Order members grabbing the members of the D.A., including his daughter, and apparating out of the chamber. Then, his eyes fell on his godson, who was staring, horrified, as the Veil encompassed him, pulling him deeper within. He felt regret and guilt as he locked eyes with Harry. He promised the boy a good life once he was cleared. He promised to pretty much adopt him. He never even got to introduce himself to his daughter...

"SIRIUS!"

* * *

The Battle of Hogwarts ended over a month ago. Everything took so long to repair and so many families were now missing members. Harry was sitting in the Burrow, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny next to him, reading through a message he received from Gringotts. Most of the Weaselys and Hermione had also received a similar letter. Harry furrowed his brow and folded up the letter. Sirius' Will had already been read, hadn't it?

"What's this all about? I thought Sirius' will had been read years ago?" Hermione asked, looking over her shoulder at the other Weaselys. The Weasely parents looked at each other and shrugged.

"Sirius might have asked the Goblins to read out a certain part of the will when Harry came of age..." Arthur said, looking at the teen in question. "It probably has to do with the who inherits the Black family properly. You do remember how, during the will reading after he died, that the subject of the Heir Black was heavily avoided." Harry nodded in understanding.

"So Sirius just wanted to make sure that everything was all over before announcing the new Black Family Head?"

"Most likely." Harry looked down at the letter folded in his lap.

"The date is set for tomorrow..." He trailed off, absently leaning into Ginny when she put an arm over his shoulders in comfort. "...we should get to bed early." He muttered, standing from his spot. "We don't want to be late."

* * *

Hermione tugged at the formal-looking robe she was wearing, trying not to look at the frozen painting of a frowning Sirius Black that was placed at the front of the room. Her robe was a bit short at the sleeve hem and it was also rather itchy, but it provided enough distraction so she wouldn't look at the painting. They, they being her, Harry, and the Weaselys, had arrived for the meeting a half-hour early, and had been waiting for close to forty minutes for everyone who was invited to finish arriving. Finally, as Draco and Narcissa Malfoy walked through the door solemnly and sat down near the back of the room, the second will reading of Sirius Black began. A Goblin stood at the front of the room and ran an appraising eye over the gathered witches and wizards. The Goblin cleared his throat and began.

"Welcome to the final will reading for one Sirius Orion Black." He looked down at the papers in his hands before saying, "Before we continue, I need one Miss Hermione Granger to come to the front." Hermione blinked and stood, shakily making her way to the front. The Goblin handed her a folded letter, which had her name and the words _Canis Minor _written in Sirius' terrible scrawl. "Lord Black asked us to give you this letter once you came of age, however, we could not contact you once you had. Please read it, and, once you have finished, we will continue with the will reading." Hermione flipped the letter over and popped open the wax seal, before sitting in an empty chair to begin reading.

* * *

_Canis Minor,_

_Hey Hermione, it's me, Sirius. I'm sure you're surprised at the nickname. I had hoped, back when you and Harry and the Weaselys visited me at Grimmauld Place, to talk to you alone to tell you something very important. A secret that had been kept from both of us. I'm sure that, by now, you should have an inkling about what I want to tell you. But before I jump right to the point, let me tell you a story._

_When Harry's dad, James, and his mum, Lily, went to invite Lily's parents to their upcoming wedding, I had tagged along to see the Muggle world. While James and Lily talked with her parents, I went for a walk. I'd gotten bored with all the talking you see. While out on my walk I met a rather pretty muggle woman with curly brown hair and brown eyes that made me melt and ruby lips that were just so kissable. I quickly charmed her with roguish grins and light touches and soft kisses. We were together (with all the benefits, wink, wink) for just over a week before I had to return to my job as an Auror. I felt bad about breaking up with her, but being involved with a muggle during that time was a bad thing for both parties._

_What I hadn't known when I broke it off with her, was that she had fallen pregnant with my child. I don't think she knew until after we broke off. I never knew until the summer after Majorca. Anyway, when she found out, I'm sure she tried her hardest to contact me and tell me about the pregnancy, but I never told her of magic nor did I tell her how to contact me. In the middle of her pregnancy, she got together with a young muggle man, and he was the one at her side as my child was born, he was at her side through my child's first years of life, he was at her side when she found out I had been falsely accused of mass-murder and sent to prison, and I'm sure he was at her side when she found out I was innocent. I've set it up so that I'd be exonerated postmortem, if you were wondering._

_Right. Back to the point. If you hadn't figured it out yet, that beautiful woman's name was Jane. Jane Granger. And that makes you, Hermione, my child and the sole heiress to the Black Family._

_I'm sorry that I never got to tell you in person. I'm sure it would have been easier on both of us if I had._

_I'm also sorry I never got to be in your life or raise you or really even get to know you._

_I've asked the Goblins and some very discreet lawyers to configure the Black family head contracts. This gives you, as my blood child, access to the Lordship, though I should say Ladyship now, ring and all the rights and titles it contains. The estate is split 70/30 in your favour between you and Harry._

_Though I do hope you don't spend it all on books._

_Love,_

_Your father,_

_Canis Major,_

_Sirius Orion Black_

_Lord of House Black._

_Mischief Managed._

* * *

Hermione's hands shook as she finished reading. Sirius was her _father?!_ She took in a few deep breaths to prevent herself from hyperventilating. She shook her head and looked up at the Goblin, who had pursed his lips and nodded at her silent question. _'It's true... I...'_ She trembled lightly as she carefully folded the letter back up. She could feel everyone's eyes on her as she gestured for the Goblin to read what remains of the will. A bunch of Galleons went to the Weaselys and to the two remaining Malfoys. Harry was given his thirty percent of the Black estate, which was mainly money and some heirlooms that Sirius thought he'd find interesting. After a few minutes of silence, Draco Malfoy stood from the back of the room and asked, his voice quiet and rough,

"Who is the new head of the House Black?" The Goblin glanced at Hermione, and she gave him a curt nod.

"Sirius Black has named his daughter as Head of House Black." Everyone in the room gasped, making Hermione flinch a bit and clutch tighter to the folded letter in her hands. Harry stood and stumbled forward.

"S-Sirius has a daughter? Who...?"

"Sirius' daughter has only just found out her heritage through a letter today." Harry furrowed his brow, not quite understanding. It was a few seconds later that Narcissa, her steel coloured eyes flicking to Hermione's hunched frame, asked,

"It is Miss Granger, isn't it?" Hermione stiffened at the question, and everyone's eyes were drawn to the letter in her hands. "Though, I guess she is now Lady Black..." The Goblin nodded.

"It is Miss Granger." He gestured into the air, and another Goblin came forward, clutching a small box in their hands. "Miss Granger, this is the Black ring. Please place it on your finger." Hermione shakily grabbed the ring, and slid it onto the appropriate finger, where it re-sized itself to fit. "Congratulations Miss Granger. You are now head of the Black family. Your father willed what remained of his estate to you." Hermione stared at the ring on her finger. "And that concludes this meeting." The Goblin shuffled his papers, and took down the painting of Sirius, before making his way to the contemplating Hermione. "Miss Granger, Mister Potter, Lord Black wanted you to have this painting as well. He said that Mister Potter knew the activation phrase. He said that it was the same as the map, if that means anything." Harry cracked a smile and nodded, accepting the painting.

* * *

Hermione tapped her wand on the wall that held the Black Family Tapestry, and watched as the disillusionment charm that had been there for years slowly faded, revealing her frowning face and elegantly scrawled name, connected to Sirius' burnt out picture by a thin branch. Grimmauld Place was still very dreary and dark, despite her efforts and her orders to Kreacher to help clean it. She sat down in the dusty old armchair that had been placed in the centre of the room, and stared at the wall. She'd always wondered why the portrait of Madame Black never screamed as harshly at her and why Kreacher was sometimes nice when she was in the house, back when she attended Hogwarts. She knew now. Sirius had probably ordered Kreacher to be nice, and Madame Black had probably seen her face on the tapestry before she died. She couldn't see a picture of her mother on the wall, and Hermione assumed that the tapestry only included Magical family members. She let out a laugh at that, unknowingly echoing Sirius' thoughts from all those years ago,

"Madame Black must have been pissed that the only proper Black heiress was born to a muggle." She said, leaning back in the chair and letting her eyes roam over the tapestry. She spotted a few names that she knew. Narcissa Malfoy and Drace Malfoy were next to each other a few centimeters from Sirius' burnt face. She could have sworn she saw a Potter somewhere on the tree, but figured her mind was playing tricks on her. It was very late at night and she'd been up for days organizing the house and removing quite the number of cursed objects from the house. Her eyes once again landed on Sirius' name, and she followed the thin branch that was connected to it to her own name and face, the word "Father" written near it. She felt her eyelids droop, sliding shut in exhaustion, just barely missing the burn marks that covered Sirius' face recede, revealing the smiling face of Sirius Black.

* * *

**Fin.**


End file.
